Obama's 17-day trip to Hawaii costs taxpayers $4M

After a rough fall spent trying to recover from the botched rollout of healthcare.gov, President Obama is no doubt looking forward to his annual year-end holiday escape to Hawaii.
The Senate on Thursday approved the first budget deal in years that didn't threaten to keep lawmakers working into Christmas week, leaving Obama, his family and a coterie of close friends free to depart for a 17-day trip to Hawaii as scheduled Friday evening.
The vacation will cost taxpayers an estimated $4 million and fill the sleepy town of Kailua and its miles of beautiful beaches with street barricades and security personnel protecting the Obamas’ rented vacation home.